"Everyone just pooled some money for me. It's enough for my mom's first surgery."
They swallowed their grievances whole, washing them down with tears.
My fists clenched tighter and tighter as the conversation between the boss and VP Sawyer replayed in my head.
"My wife's cousin's kid just got back from overseas with his master's degree—and he brought a whole team with him. Get rid of Tech and make room for them!"
"Soon enough. Push them hard enough and they'll quit on their own. Saves us the severance pay."
"Besides, I've got one more trick up my sleeve. They won't last long after that..."
They'd assumed I was long gone. But I'd left my glasses behind and doubled back.
I heard every word of their scheme.
"This time, we're not letting it slide!"
My voice came out rough. In my eyes burned the determination of a pushover backed into a corner.
Why should the nice guys always get trampled?
Why should we pour everything we have into this job, only for greedy executives to invent excuses to bleed us dry?
Caspar's eyes lit up. "Boss, the competitor next door is offering five times our salary to poach our entire team."
In the AI industry, technical talent is the ultimate competitive edge.